landmark

American  

[land-mahrk] / ˈlændˌmɑrk /

noun

• landmarks
  plural

1. a prominent or conspicuous object on land that serves as a guide, especially to ships at sea or to travelers on a road; a distinguishing landscape feature marking a site or location.

   The post office served as a landmark for locating the street to turn down.

2. something used to mark the boundary of land.

3. a building or other place that is of outstanding historical, aesthetic, or cultural importance, often declared as such and given a special status landmark designation, ordaining its preservation, by some authorizing organization.

4. a significant or historic event, juncture, achievement, etc..

   The court decision stands as a landmark in constitutional law.

   Synonyms:

   benchmark, watershed, milestone

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verb (used with object)

1. to declare (a building, site, etc.) a landmark.

   a movement to landmark New York's older theaters.

landmark British  

/ ˈlændˌmɑːk /

noun

1. a prominent or well-known object in or feature of a particular landscape

2. an important or unique decision, event, fact, discovery, etc

3. a boundary marker or signpost

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unlandmarked
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• landmarks
  plural

Etymology

Origin of landmark

before 1000; Middle English; Old English landmearc. See land, mark ¹

Explanation

A landmark is anything that helps you know where you are — in space, in time, in history. If you’re sailing from Europe to New York, the Statue of Liberty will be the landmark that lets you know you’re in the right port. If you’re walking to your cousin’s house, the pizza shop on the corner is the landmark that lets you know you just have two blocks to go. Getting your driver’s license is a landmark event, as was the Revolutionary War — though which battle was harder is yours to determine.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

landmark landmarks

Meanwhile, the city is still managing a landmark federal lawsuit settlement, which requires it to invest in thousands of new shelter beds in its response to homelessness.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026

That advisory cited the United Kingdom’s landmark Cass Review, which in 2024 said there was “not a reliable evidence base” for families or doctors to make informed decisions about these medical interventions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 18, 2026

But one former GB women's international, who asked to remain anonymous to protect relationships within the sport, told BBC Sport that hockey missed a major opportunity to capitalise on its landmark moment.

From BBC ● Aug. 18, 2026

Dozens of US states sued four major tobacco companies for downplaying the harmful health impacts of their products, and won a 1998 landmark settlement that included financial penalties and changes to product marketing.

From Barron's ● Aug. 18, 2026

My first landmark would be the elves’ Forest.

From "Ella Enchanted" by Gail Carson Levine

These worrying landmarks reinforce a market perception that fixed-income investments are losing bets, a sentiment Hartnett summarizes as “Anything But Bonds.”

From MarketWatch ● Aug. 14, 2026

Social realist dramas aren’t new and they include award-winning landmarks by Ken Loach and Chloé Zhao.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

This decline occurred regardless of whether spatial landmarks were available and regardless of how complicated the route was.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 9, 2026

Arabic texts as far back as the 15th century codified the discipline of navigation, though ship captains sailed the reefs from memory, using poems rather than maps to recall notable landmarks.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 6, 2026

The walking tour guides one through the city's various landmarks, reciting bits of information the listener might find enlightening.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Related Words

• marker
• memorial
• milestone
• monument
• museum
• tree